It also signals a future passing of the torch for Bob Valente, RAV’s founder, who established the business 34 years ago. Valente will not immediately retire when the acquisition is effective Oct. 1. He’ll stay with the company as a client and transition specialist, maintaining the various relationships he’s cultivated over the decades as dust of the merger settles. This deal illustrates financial planners truly practicing what they preach — planning for the future. “Philosophically, every business owner seeks a vital successor that will continue its mission statement — and we have found that in Sequoia,” Valente said. “RAV has always focused on our clients’ needs and successes, and those objectives are intrinsic with our combined company cultures.” Valente said he doesn’t plan to retire for at least another five to seven years. “We want to see the fruits of our labor through another generation of clients,” he said. Terms of the June 17 deal were not disclosed. RAV comprises about $500 million in assets under advisement and a staff of 12, all of whom are joining Sequoia. The merger of both fiduciaries will bring Sequoia to about $3 billion in assets under advisement with 60 employees spanning offices in Akron; St. Clair Shores, Mich.; Tampa, Fla.; and now Beachwood, where RAV is based. The merger will create additional economies of scale. Sequoia president Tom Haught said that will translate into additional investments in new technology, research capabilities and compliance, which is expected to become stricter in the wake of the U.S. Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule expected to result in more rigorous documentation for work on retirement accounts. Another attractive feature of the merger is the acquisition of veteran principals. Both firms tout similar cultures, and each report that the climate for acquiring the best talent in this field is particularly competitive right now. So the merger just felt right, said Haught, who founded Sequoia 25 years ago. “Our teams coming together will help both talent pools play at a higher level, which is helpful for the client service experience,” Haught said. “We also think this will give opportunities for those people to specialize in areas they’re passionate about.” The specialization factor is becoming increasingly common in the financial planning sector today — and other financial disciplines, for that matter. It’s a way for firms to differentiate themselves in a competitive market and signals another way Sequoia is eyeing a long-term path to viability as a business. Sequoia has had a fiscal office in Cleveland, but having another physical location in Beachwood is valuable in terms of service. Keeping that Beachwood office is important to existing clients, Haught said, and means clients in the upper end of the Northeast Ohio market won’t have to travel as far to meet with an adviser. “There’s a good nucleus of existing clients and team members there,” Haught said, “and we also think that is a growing location.” Sequoia’s last acquisition prior to RAV came in a 2012 merger with Hammerman & Strickland, a Florida outfit that expanded the firm’s presence to the South. Balancing organic with acquisitive growth remains the firm’s focus as it achieves additional scale. However, there aren’t any intentions currently to push Sequoia into a massive company, Haught said. In fact, any future acquisitions at this point would most likely come in existing markets in Ohio, Michigan and Florida — not new regions. “We see all this as a doubling down on our commitment to planning,” Haught said, “which is the foundation for client engagements.”